Focus on Thailand and International Speaking For a more detailed look at my preparation and speaking trip to Thailand visit http://www.antion.com/thailand.htm For Thailand tips from "Great Speaking" readers visit http://www.antion.com/thailandreadertips.htm ########################################## GREAT SPEAKING Circulation 6799 Vol. 1 Number 11 - June 18, 1999 Publisher: Tom Antion tomAntion@aol.com http://www.Antion.com (C) Anchor Publishing 1999 ########################################## No one ever lost credibility by being interesting. ========================================== Please feel free to forward this E-Zine to anyone you know that is interested in being a better presenter, or who may want to make money speaking and training. If you are receiving this issue as a forward, and would like to get your own free subscription, please visit http://www.antion.com/ezinesubscribe.htm PRIVACY STATEMENT: We will not distribute your address to anyone. Period. ============================================= IN THIS ISSUE ============================================= 1. Quick Presentation Skills Tip 2. Advanced Presentation Skills Article (Beginners should read this too) 3. Humor Technique Series 4. Speaker Marketing Tip 5. Speaker Humor 6. Websites for Speakers *** SPEAKER BUSINESS LEADS *** Will be delivered to full subscribers when available. ********** OUR SPONSOR *********** LAST CHANCE FOR PRE-RELEASE PRICING The WAKE EM UP PROFESSIONAL SPEAKING VIDEO TRAINING SYSTEM is in Pre-Release for one more week. If you can do without the fancy packaging, you can save a ton on this fantastic new advanced speaker training tool. For details: visit http://www.antion.com/products/newvideo.htm ************************************ ===================================================== 1. Quick Presentation Skills Tip ===================================================== BILINGUAL HELP by Tom Antion When going over room setup and audio / visual requirements with a foreign logistics person, make sure you do it in advance of the presentation (hopefully several times), and have a bilingual person there to ensure that both you and the logistics person are on the same wavelength. Be in the room very early on the day of the presentation (at least two hours before the first presentation in that room) and, if possible, also have your bilingual helper there too. Terms that are familiar to most English speaking speakers are difficult to translate into a foreign language. One good idea is to take pictures of the various items you may need (overhead projector, white board, etc.) and carry them with you to the event. When you want something, all you have to do is show the picture which, when you are desperate in a foreign country, is worth a million words. ************ SPONSOR ************ FREE Consulting with Tom New Consulting Clients this month will receive an additional hour with Tom absolutely FREE. Call (301) 459-0738 for details. Improve Now in the areas of Marketing, Delivery and Speech Development . . . and Make More Money / Get Promoted Faster. ********************************** ********* 10,000 Plus Visitors per Month ********** Tom gets this many people and over 40,000 individual page views at http://www.antion.com and it is growing. A 1.5 hour consultation with Tom will tell you how to get there. To schedule a non technical "dummies" appointment call (301) 459-0738 mailto:tomantion@aol.com ********************************************* ===================================================== 2. Advanced Presentation Skills Article ===================================================== THE FRONT ROW by Tom Antion In the research I did on my recent trip to Thailand, I discovered that a meeting or seminar custom is to seat VIP attendees in the front row. No one of a lesser status either socially or in business would think of sitting closer to the front than their boss, or someone of a higher social ranking. This is a very loose and largely ignored custom in Western meetings, and carries a significantly higher decorum in Thailand and Asia. Since many meetings are rather westernized anyway, don*t fret if your meeting is not run this way, but your knowledge and adherence to this custom can earn you some real points with the people that count. Room Setup I normally use a semi circular theatre style room setup whenever I can. In my Thailand talk, I found out approximately how many VIPs there would be and set the front row with plush chairs that were obviously nicer and different than the rest of the typical hotel chairs. I befriended one of the attendees who knew what the VIP attendees looked like. When a VIP was identified, either me or my assistant escorted them to a front row seat. I had some time to blow while awaiting the arrival of the Governor so, I went around the room allowing the attendees to name themselves and their affiliations. I started at the back of the room and ended with the most senior official in the front row. These gestures were very well received and paved the way for a very productive meeting. *********** SPONSOR *********** INTERNATIONAL CALL FOR MARKETING/ADVERTISING EXPERTS National advertising trainer Drew Eric Whitman--a.k.a. "Dr. Direct!(tm)"--seeks experts with powerful, exciting speaking voices for unusual, new audiocassette anthology, "PROJECT-X: Underground Success Secrets from Today's Advertising & Marketing Master-Minds(tm)." The album will be produced to Nightingale-Conant-quality specs and will include your name, bio, photo, voice and international marketing support and publicity. Featured expert is the great Dottie Walters. Space is limited. mailto:Drew@AdSurgeon.com with PROJECT-X in the SUBJECT area for full details via email. ******************************** ===================================================== 3. HUMOR TECHNIQUE ===================================================== SHOW EM WHEN YOU CROSS CULTURES by Tom Antion Regardless of one*s nationality and culture, cartoons and comic strips are the most universally accepted format for humor. These pieces of visual humor are seen in newspapers and magazines in most areas of the world. They may be found in newsstands in large cities, or in large libraries. It might be fun to collect cartoons and comic strips when you travel so you have a ready supply when you need one for a presentation. Be careful to avoid cartoons that have political overtones. If you are presenting to a small group, you can show the periodical or pass it around. If you want to use the cartoon or comic strip in a visual, you may need permission from the artist or copyright owner. Always read the caption for a foreign audience and give them time to mentally translate what you say. It may take what seems to be forever (4-6 seconds) for the idea to sink in. Another good resource for cartoons is "Witty World International Cartoon Magazine" by Creators Syndicate. Other forms of visual humor that transcend most cultural barriers are juggling and magic. Good resource materials are available on both topics. "Speaking With Magic" is a book by Michael Jeffreys that not only teaches you simple tricks, but gives you the points you can relate to the trick. Two good magic videos for speakers by master magician Tom Ogden are "Teaching and Training with Magic" and "The Magic of Creativity." In Thailand, I used props as icebreakers. I used oversize money to pass out to the crowd because I knew they were interested in "BIG MONEY." I also used some softballs that looked like dollar bills so they would have money to "THROW AROUND." (Re: Wake *em Up Business Presentations Page 23) ********* GREAT SPEAKER REFERENCE ******* BE THE HIT OF YOUR NEXT PRESENTATION! "Wake em Up! How to Use Humor and Other Professional Techniques to Create Alarmingly Good Business Presentations" "Toms program and materials will cut five years off a speakers learning curve." -- Cavett Robert, Founder National Speakers Assn. For a FREE Chapter visit http://www.antion.com/products/produc~3.htm ********************************************** ===================================================== 4. $$$$$$$ SPEAKER MARKETING TIP $$$$$$$$ ===================================================== COMBO YOUR MESSAGE by Tom Antion Anytime you send a marketing message, add something else interesting to persuade the recipient to keep your message around longer. Throw in an interesting statistic from their industry. Put in a relevant cartoon, comic strip, or one liner in quotation marks. NOTE: I just ran across the most fabulous marketing site I have ever seen. Im using a tremendous amount of what I learned at this site. Check it out http://www.marketingtips.com/t.cgi/12273/ Want to really take advantage of your E-mail marketing . . . WITHOUT BEING A SPAMMER? GO TO http://www.marketingtips.com/mailloop/t.x/12273 ********* SPONSOR ********* 1/2 price closeout on Toms classic "Make 'em Laugh" Video Seminar. Only a few left. visit http://www.antion.com/products/produc~1.htm **************************** ===================================================== 5. SPEAKER HUMOR ===================================================== => If we had an instant replay camera like the NFL has we could watch that joke die again. => I asked the meeting planner what I should talk about. He/she said, "about 20 minutes." => GOOD SPEECH FORMULA: Have a good beginning; a good ending; and keep them close together. => He who hesitates is probably right. => No one is listening until you make a mistake. => Two wrongs are only the beginning. => The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up. => If you think nobody cares about you, try missing a couple of payments. => Love may be blind, but marriage is a real eye-opener. => Half the people you know are below average. => 42.7% of all statistics are made up on the spot. => The new computers are so humanistic that on Monday morning they come in late. => Live every day like it was your last . . . and it soon will be. => You are only young once. After that you need some other excuse. => You are as young as you feel, but seldom as important. => SAID BY SMALL CHILD: If George Washington was so honest, why do they close all the banks on his birthday? => That Washington never told a lie, of course, is very true, But he went into politics when the country was still new! => BUSINESS STRATEGY: Pick a good popcorn location and build a theatre around it. => BUSINESS FRUSTRATION: "I'll be back at either noon, four thirty or tomorrow morning . . . and that*s definite." => I told the boss I wanted a raise, or he/she could count me out. The boss replied, "one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten . . . " => Confucius say, "He who slings mud, loses ground." Lot's more FREE speaker humor at http://www.antion.com/humor/speakerhumor/speakerhumor.htm ===================================================== 6. USEFUL WEBSITES ===================================================== LAPTOP TRAVEL http://www.laptoptravel.com This site sells all kinds of peripherals and adapters to guarantee you'll be able to hook up in countries around the world. Search by country or region, read through the helpful travel tips, and rest easy on your next 20-hour flight. CYBERCAFE SEARCH http://www.cyber-star.com/cgi-bin/csn.cgi?r=3&f=no You can use this site to find places around the world where you can rent short term Internet access while you do your laundry or have a cup of coffee. LEARN A LANGUAGE http://www.travlang.com/languages/ Go to this site and you can pick a language and hear the pronunciations of many simple phrases right at your computer. I used my microcassette recorder to record the pronunciations of many simple Thai phrases and practiced them on plane. ****** EARN BIG REFERRAL COMMISSIONS ****** You can earn a 10 - 25 percent commission for referring Tom for speaking engagements and bulk product sales. Commissions normally start between $500.00 and $1250 depending on your level of involvement. For complete details visit http://www.antion.com/referrals.htm *********************************************** ===================================================== FREE ARTICLES FOR YOUR PUBLICATIONS ===================================================== I have many articles available for reprint in your publication, company newsletter, etc. You may use articles written by me that you see in great speaking. Back issues can be viewed at http://www.antion.com/ezine/ezinebackissues.htm OR mailto:freearticles@antion.com for an automated list of additional articles. All you have to do is print the article in its entirety along with the by line at top and the credits, and complete contact information at the end of each article. I would appreciate a tear sheet or electronic copy too. Thanks ******* Do YOU WANT TO BE A SPONSOR? ******* REACH OVER 6700 SPEAKERS / TRAINERS / EXECS For automated sponsorship details send mailto:sponsor@antion.com *********************************************** ===================================================== For Back Issues visit: http://www.antion.com/ezine/ezinebackissues.htm ===================================================== Antion & Associates / Anchor Publishing Box 2630 Landover Hills, Maryland USA 20784 (301) 459-0738, Fax (301) 552-0225 In Continental US (800) 448-6280 orders or paid consulting only mailto:TomAntion@aol.com http://www.antion.com Trade permanent links with us mailto:linktrade@antion.com